


going nowhere fast (as long as i’m with you)

by Kaiosea



Category: Infinite (Band), K-pop
Genre: Gen, M/M, Nothing too explicit, Paradise MV, Pre-Slash, mild horror/injury/blood
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2016-03-14
Updated: 2016-03-14
Packaged: 2018-05-26 15:47:18
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 3,476
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/6245977
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Kaiosea/pseuds/Kaiosea
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>On an eerie underground train ride, someone is hiding a secret. Sungyeol has to figure out what’s right.</p>
            </blockquote>





	going nowhere fast (as long as i’m with you)

**Author's Note:**

  * For [bluedreaming](https://archiveofourown.org/users/bluedreaming/gifts).



> Written for ifntvalentine exchange on LJ, originally posted [here.](http://ifntvalentine.livejournal.com/4476.html)
> 
> for: bluedreaming. Happy Valentine’s Day! I took your suggestion of the Paradise MV as inspiration for this fic :) I’ve never written anything remotely in the horror genre before, so although I think this is more mild horror it was challenging but fun to write, and I hope you like it!

Sungyeol knew that they could all hear the arguments coming from the adjacent train cabin, the one where Myungsoo, Sungjong, and Sunggyu were staying. He was starting to doubt it was a routine matter that had the three up in arms. Given the amount of time they spent constantly together, petty arguments were commonplace among the seven of them, but this one seemed rather prolonged. The pitch and volume were difficult to ignore.

Hoya turned his music up, earphones blasting so loudly that Sungyeol could make out every lyric of the rap he was listening to despite sitting all the way on the other side of their cabin. Dongwoo had been asleep for the last few hours, or if he wasn’t, he was doing an impressive job pretending to be. And Woohyun caught Sungyeol’s glance and held it for a second too long before shifting his gaze to the window. Sungyeol could tell he wasn’t really looking outside, because there was nothing to see.

This world tour had them shuttling from country to country, flying over one land’s soil one day, landing on new ground in the next. Currently they found themselves below the surface of the earth, traveling from England to France. Someone had decided—maybe Sunggyu, maybe someone higher up—that it would be a good idea to give them a break from flying, and take a high-speed train to their next destination instead. They had looked forward to it, Sungyeol and Dongwoo especially. The prospect of experiencing a new way of travel excited them, and they wanted to see a world unknown.

Sungyeol didn’t know how long they’d been riding the train, probably only a few hours, and yet they’d learned quickly that the reality was far less bright. This was a man-made structure; the tunnels they traveled were only tunnels. They had their metallic ridges and grooves, but monotony was all they could make out from the inside, where it was almost as dark. The indoor train lights had dimmed not long after they boarded, signalling that it was nighttime in their timezone, whatever the hell that was. Sungyeol had lost track on the first leg of the tour, before even leaving his home continent. Though it was likely the middle of the night, it wasn’t surprising that none of them was asleep; most of them caught winks when they both had the time to and felt tired, which was a rare combination. Though he might have been trying to nap, if it hadn’t been for the commotion going on next door.

Sunggyu, Myungsoo, and Sungjong finally emerged from the train compartment. Right away Sungyeol registered that one of them was dripping blood on the ground. Alarm ran into his veins, his breath sucked out of him. His eyes frantically tracked the source of the blood and found Sunggyu holding a hand to his forehead. In the dim light of the train, red was barely visible between his pale fingers.

Woohyun strode over immediately. “What’s wrong?”

“We had an accident,” Sungjong said carefully.

Sungyeol got up from his seat and went to yank out Hoya’s earphones. Hoya had been facing the wrong direction to notice the members’ entrance, and upon seeing Sunggyu, his mouth fell open slightly.

Sunggyu smiled as if he’d been asked an awkward question on a variety show. “I’m fine.”

“We should get some help,” Woohyun said firmly. Dongwoo had come to his side and was poring over Sunggyu’s face, nodding in agreement with Woohyun.

Sunggyu’s smile faded. “No. I’m fine. No one needs to know about this.”

“Let’s get help,” Myungsoo said. It was an unconvincing echo.

“Why?” Sunggyu asked. “Head wounds bleed a lot, I’m barely scraped. Get me a towel from my suitcase.”

He hadn’t directed his words at anyone specific, but Sungjong went back to their compartment, the noise of the train temporarily obliterating conversation as he crossed over to the other side.

“Because you fell?” Woohyun said, his mouth flattened into a straight line. “You fell, didn’t you?”

Sunggyu looked at Myungsoo. “Of course I fell.”

Myungsoo looked back at him. “Right,” he said slowly. He opened his mouth, but whatever he was going to say next was lost to the noise of the train as Sungjong emerged from the other compartment again, bearing a clean towel. Sunggyu used it to mop at his face, and then pressed it tightly to his forehead. They crowded around him in a tight half circle, until Sunggyu told them to give him some space, seriously. He insisted on this a few more times before they peeled off one by one, each reluctant to leave his side. They took their places around the compartment, Myungsoo and Sungjong electing to stay rather than return to their own bunk.

As a way to pass time, Sungyeol played a few games of cards with Hoya, who won three times in a row. Sungyeol bit his lip and conceded, knowing that he had been distracted the whole time. But so was Hoya, if the sidelong glances to Sungjong were any clue—it just so happened that stress made Hoya sharp and aggressive, while it made Sungyeol dull. He was sure that they all watched Sunggyu from the corners of their eyes, Woohyun with his laptop, not typing a thing, Dongwoo again pretending to sleep on one of the uncomfortable dark seats. Myungsoo and Sungjong were having a conversation in low voices, a strange contrast to the heated fight they’d come from.

Sunggyu, who had made himself scarce by a window, took the cloth down from his face, his expression calm, though the drying blood on his face remained disturbing. Sungjong stood up and asked if anyone would like a snack, saying that he was going to the other compartment to grab his coat. No one responded, and he was scarcely gone for a minute, returning clad in a jacket that Sungyeol knew to be a light blue, though it went stark white under the dimmed lighting. He resembled a well-dressed ghost.

Sungyeol blinked, noticing the skin on his arms was gooseflesh.

“Does anyone think,” said Dongwoo, very quietly. “That we should have arrived at our destination by now?” The air hung in the balance of his words.

After a pause, Sunggyu asked, “What time is it?”

Sungyeol didn’t bother checking his watch. It was still set to Korean Standard. He hadn’t bothered to learn the time conversion, and besides, it ran slow.

“No internet. I dunno.” Hoya tossed his phone back in his bag and banged the side of the train door with his fist, causing everyone to recoil. “Shouldn’t this place have WiFi?”

“I haven’t had service in a few hours,” said Sungjong.

Woohyun shook his head. “But how many? Two, or like ten?” It seemed closer to ten, to Sungyeol.

“Ten?” said Sunggyu. “This train only takes two hours. It hasn’t been that long.”

“No, that’s wrong,” said Hoya. “I listened to this playlist twice, and that makes us at least five hours in.”

Dongwoo nodded once, and kept nodding.

“Where is this damn train taking us?” Now Woohyun was the one to slam his fist into the floor. “We need to get Jungyeop-nim, see what’s going on.”

Some of the staff were staying in the next compartment over, in the opposite direction of Sunggyu, Myungsoo, and Sungjong’s cabin. “I’ll look,” said Sungjong.

“Take Myungsoo with you,” said Sunggyu. Ordinarily, this suggestion wouldn’t have stuck out, but given the context, Sungyeol found himself with an uneasy feeling lodged in his stomach. 

Dongwoo spoke up. “There’s nowhere we’re going.” They waited for him to explain what he meant, but he seemed reluctant, furrowing his brow. He folded and unfolded his hands in his lap. “The train doesn’t have alternate routes. It only goes down one path, it takes roughly two hours, and there’s no way to overshoot the destination. What’s happening is impossible.”

The train rattled on the tracks. Sungyeol shivered.

Sungjong jumped to his feet. “I’m going to see the staff. Maybe they have an explanation.”

“Yeah,” Woohyun said, his voice wavering. “The train has to be slowed down for some reason.”

Though he’d been ready to join Sungjong before, Myungsoo now looked ghastly white.

“Hey, I’ll come,” Sungyeol said, easily taking his place. He appreciated Sungjong’s quick decision-making, though he guessed he was just hiding his worries beneath a facade. 

Sunggyu said, “Woohyun and I will check out the other side.” It was hard to look at him with the dark blood smeared on his face, but he showed no signs of pain, his mouth relaxed.

Sungyeol thought that was a smart move. Dongwoo, Hoya and Myungsoo could stay and keep an eye on things here; as a fair trio, they wouldn’t do anything stupid.

“Let’s go,” Sungjong said to him quietly.

The train roared as they opened the exit to cross between cabins, a cacophony of metallic screech and wind. They stopped in front of the cabin, and Sungyeol grabbed Sungjong’s hand. Sungjong bristled, then relaxed into the touch, his fingers holding a gentle shape in Sungyeol’s grasp. It was too dark and their hands too low to be seen. With his free hand, Sungjong extended his arm and unlatched the door, and they stepped into the inside of the compartment.

It was empty.

Sungyeol nearly screamed, and Sungjong’s hand shook. Through the windows, a bare minimum of light from the tunnel flashed through the shades, causing a ripple effect across the seats. The floor gave the impression it moved like quicksand beneath their feet. But more than that, when they boarded, this place had been chockful of managers, stylists, and other company personnel, yet there was no sign that any human had ever passed through.

Sungjong swallowed. “We should check the next one.”

Sungyeol covered his ears to the roar as they crossed over to the next compartment, Sungjong leading the way like a pale shadow. No one. No suitcases or luggage, no humane warmth or presence. The absolute lack of smell was disconcerting.

“How did Sunggyu get hurt?” Sungyeol asked, as they headed up to the next compartment.

Sungjong instead asked him, “Where are we taking this train?”

Sungyeol was used to getting the brush-off from him, although it had happened less in recent months. He’d gotten accustomed to Sungjong’s straightforward manner of speech in private, and to hear less than that displeased him, as if Sungjong didn’t trust him completely. 

They heard a deep, mechanic noise from the next compartment.

“Turning back now,” Sungyeol said, and began to jog away.

“Wait,” Sungjong said. “We’re alone.”

“So?”

“So I wanted to tell you something.” Sungjong raised his chin, his neck shining pale within the confines of his coat. “Sunggyu got hurt because of me.”

Sungyeol waited for him to make sense, because that was an impossible statement.

“Myungsoo happened first,” Sungjong said. His mouth twisted. “They thought I was asleep,” he started again, and began to recount.

_“You’re going to ask Sungyeol out?” Sunggyu had repeated, unbelieving._

_“Because I love him,” Myungsoo said._

_“You can’t be serious.” Sunggyu’s voice was unforgiving. “Not between members.” ___

__“Why are you telling me this?” Sungyeol dropped his eyes to the ground, swirling with unfamiliar bits of light. His body had tightened as soon as Sungjong had started to talk, tension coiling from his chest to his toes._ _

__There was something wrong with this train, for a confession like that could never have happened elsewhere. Things like stray crushes on unattainable people were meant to be squashed down and never brought to float secondhand in the air. It was impossible to think of Myungsoo like that, and yet Sungyeol imagined how his face would have looked while saying something like that. His eyes would look shiny as they always did when he talked about things he cared about, and his chin would tuck into his chest as he waited, unsure._ _

__Sungjong emitted a harsh sound that wasn’t like a laugh at all. “Because I pushed Sunggyu for saying that.”_ _

__The lights dimmed, barely noticeable._ _

__Sungyeol took a step away, on the pretense of checking out the next undoubtedly empty cabin. “It was an accident.”_ _

__“Of course it was an accident. But I still did it. I pushed him, he tripped. Immediately after that, I was sorry, but he didn’t want help dealing with it.”_ _

__Sungyeol didn’t understand why they had acted so secretive about it, if it was an accident. He breathed a sigh of relief. But also: “Why did he care? It’s not his business.”_ _

__Someone else answered, “Because I thought you would say yes.”_ _

__Sunggyu was framed in the doorway they’d come from. He looked at them with a blank expression and enunciated clearly._ _

__Sungjong’s face was like a clay mask, built of hard, unmovable angles._ _

__“I have to think about the group,” said Sunggyu. “You and Myungsoo aren’t the only two members. Something like this could break us apart. Our years are limited as it is, and I didn’t want him to take a chance that would ruin everything.”_ _

__Sungjong said, “I understand that, and so does he, but—”_ _

__“You know I can’t stop him from saying things,” said Sunggyu. “I won’t treat them any differently, if that’s what he decides. I’m just the voice of reason.”_ _

__The train roared, signaling another entrance. Myungsoo appeared behind Sunggyu, not bothering to pretend he hadn’t been following him._ _

__“What’s this?” Myungsoo’s face was frightened, his lips drawn together tightly._ _

__“We were just having a conversation,” said Sungyeol._ _

__“I was telling him about how I hurt you,” Sungjong said to Sunggyu._ _

__“Okay,” said Sunggyu, scratching his head. Somehow the leftover blood was less macabre up-close. “So what, I forgave him. It wasn’t on purpose, and it doesn’t hurt. Seriously. It’s nothing.”_ _

__Sungjong inclined his head carefully._ _

__“No,” Myungsoo said. “It’s not nothing.”_ _

__“Let it go,” said Sungjong, with a sharp turn of his chin ._ _

__“No,” Myungsoo said, more firmly. “I pushed him. Sungyeol can know.”_ _

__The lights rose, the floor stabilizing briefly before become an indistinguishable mass of smears once again. Myungsoo’s shoulders were hunched over, his gaze directly resolutely down._ _

__“And I said I forgave you,” Sunggyu said, exasperated. “It’s not a big deal. And now I want to lie down, I’m cold,” He looked around. “We should go back to our room. Our cabin, I mean.”_ _

__Sungyeol never knew how much of an act Sunggyu was putting on when he acted like a leader, unfazed by any trouble, but he appreciated it now._ _

__They walked from cabin to cabin in an endless loop of noise and miasma, rejoining the group. Dongwoo was hanging over a seat looking listlessly at nothing, while Woohyun and Hoya forced laughter, as if they’d been having obscene fun in the others’ absence._ _

__Sunggyu excused himself to go sleep, telling them that they were all going to be fine. Myungsoo followed him in, and Sungyeol and Sungjong sequestered themselves in a corner, carrying on in whispers._ _

__No one could overhear them, so Sungyeol asked, “Why did you lie?”_ _

__Sungjong made a soft noise, and his lips parted. They barely moved as he spoke. “It’s because I like him, Sungyeol. I like Myungsoo, too.”_ _

__The lights rose a notch, the flat finish on the windows developing the hint of a shine._ _

__Sungyeol said nothing._ _

__“Now you know. What are you going to do about him?” Sungjong said. “Tell me. I can handle it.”_ _

__A few years ago, Sungjong had still been growing, and Sungyeol had feared that he would overtake his height someday. He knew that was not a possibility anymore; Sungjong’s height was fixed, but looking at him, sometimes he instinctively felt that he needed to look up to meet his gaze._ _

__“I don’t know.”_ _

__“You have to decide.”_ _

__“I _am_ deciding,” Sungyeol said. But he had only begun to notice things like Myungsoo’s collarbones or, even more intriguing, Sungjong’s wrists. He made decisions off snap judgments or not at all, taking months to deliberate mediocre purchases. _ _

__Sungjong raised himself to his feet and left for his cabin, to do what Sungyeol hadn’t a clue. His light coat whirled around his legs as he left._ _

__Sungyeol set his elbow on his knee and pried at his lower lip with one of his hands, not sure of anything. If there was someone he could feel that way about, he didn’t know if it would be Myungsoo. He relinquished his lip after feeling the start of a bleed, coppery on his tongue, and raised his eyes to the window directly above him._ _

__The view outside the train remained stagnant and uninspiring, a flatline of grey metal. If he were stuck here forever, he needed to decide how and who he’d spend his time with._ _

__Of the three confessions he received today, the last one passed only from Sungyeol to himself._ _

__The lights rose again, ever so slightly, but it was starting to look bright inside._ _

__“Hey. Do you hear noises?” Hoya said, pointing at the door Sungyeol had just come from._ _

__It sounded like mumbling. The sound rushed louder, and Sungyeol didn’t know what to think of it—more ghosts, or trouble lurking behind the door. The sound developed into something larger, and he flinched when a sharp knock came from the door. The handle began to turn, and they collectively held their breath._ _

__“Hello? All alive in here?” It was only one of their managers, but Sungyeol’s forearms tensed, ready for a trap. It was impossible that he could walk through that door; there had been no one there, scarcely nothing in the compartment. He looked behind him and saw that Sungjong, Myungsoo and Sunggyu had come back into the room, probably overhearing the noise, or noticing the increased light._ _

__The manager simply continued, “We’re arriving soon. You made a mess here, so clean it up as soon as possible.”_ _

__Sungyeol forced himself to nod. A flood began to crowd the cabin, checking that everyone was accounted for. He heard someone tease Dongwoo for strewing his possessions all around the seats. An announcement sounded out through the intercom, though the words formed a large fumbling mess in his ears. “ _Attention Mesdames et Messieurs, le train entrera bientôt en gare…_ ” _ _

__“You look tired.” A makeup artist slid over to Sungyeol. “Rest more on these trips. There’s only so much that BB cream can do.”_ _

__Sungyeol felt warmth spread through his chest. The room lightened, bringing animation back to the atmosphere. “Yeah, bet you’ll hate to see what Sunggyu’s got to cover—”_ _

__He cut himself off abruptly, because he had seen Sunggyu’s face. He was talking animatedly to Jungyeop-nim, nodding like a tightly wound yo-yo. But his forehead was unblemished and free of rusted blood; even more, it was missing a cut entirely._ _

__“Sorry.” Sungyeol excused himself, needing to re-pack his things. He had never removed much from his luggage, but he recovered a book from below one of the seats, and his scarf from another._ _

__Everyone seemed to be acting normally. Sungyeol knew he couldn’t mention the deserted cabins, the blood on Sunggyu’s forehead, or the hours they spent wandering the train. Or the other secrets he’d learned, about Myungsoo and Sungjong and himself._ _

__Myungsoo wandered over, rolling his luggage up alongside. His breathing was laboured, and Sungyeol guessed that Sunggyu and Sungjong had made him do the heavy lifting in the other compartment. “Yeol, what’s wrong?”_ _

__Sungyeol didn’t answer, turning his head to follow Sungjong’s profile as he came into the room tapping at his phone. He felt shock upon noticing that his coat was black. Did Sungjong even own a light blue coat?_ _

__The air lit up further, and the train rumbled. With shock, Sungyeol realized that this quantity of light hadn’t come from inside the train. Instead the windows flooded with sunlight, an open sky. The train had stopped._ _

__“Ready?” Sungjong said, suddenly at his side. Sungyeol flinched and shook his hair out of his eyes. He hadn’t seen Sungjong come up behind him._ _

__“I have sleep in my eyes,” Sungyeol offered as an excuse._ _

__“How? I don’t think any of us slept on the train,” said Sungjong wryly, and Myungsoo half-chuckled in agreement._ _

__Sungyeol didn’t know if they meant what he thought they meant. Maybe they would never talk about this again: the confessions, Sunggyu’s blood, the empty train, holding Sungjong’s hand, Myungsoo’s left-behind confession that might never materialize again. Maybe the things he had imagined to be real had their place on the train._ _

__They strolled on, through messy compartments that had clearly been visited by a multitude of people, the lingering perfumes and body odor never more appealing than after his ordeal._ _

__He stepped off the platform and walked forward with Myungsoo and Sungjong at either shoulder._ _

__Or maybe he could find a place for them here, wherever that would be._ _


End file.
